Del Monte nets $17.8 million

AFP FILE PHOTO

MANILA—Del Monte Pacific Ltd. reported Friday it had a net income of $17.8 million for the first nine months of the year, a decline of five percent from the same period a year ago, taking into account one-time expenses from its dual listing and the proposed acquisition of the consumer food business of the US corporation Del Monte Foods (DMF).

Without the non-recurring expenses, net profit for the first nine months of the year would have been $20.7 million, or up 11 percent from the level a year ago, DMPL disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange.

For the third quarter alone, base net profit of $8.9 million was 7 percent higher than the same period last year but after incurring one-off transaction fees of $1.7 million for the proposed US acquisition, net profit was down by 13 percent to $7.2 million.

For the nine-month period, sales went up by 12 percent year-on-year to $335.4 million on higher volume and better sales mix.

On one-off items that reduced profit, the group incurred non-recurring expenses of $1.7 million relating to transaction fees for the proposed US acquisition and $1.2 million in fees relating to the dual listing on the Philippine Stock Exchange last June. Prior to its local listing, the company was already listed in Singapore.

Operating cash flow was a negative $5.4 million compared to a negative $23 million in the prior year period which was attributed by the company to changes in working capital.